Four Louisvillians died in a car accident near St. Louis, Missouri Friday morning on the way to a volleyball tournament in St. Louis, Missouri. YPAS freshman Brennan Prather’s mother and sister, Lesley Prather (40) and Rhyan Prather (12), respectively, were among the victims.

Brennan and his father, Justin Prather (40), are asking that all Manual students wear light blue on Tuesday as a form of remembrance for their family and the other two victims involved in the crash.

Carrie McCaw (44) and her daughter Kacey McCaw (12) also died in the accident.

According to the Courier Journal, there were three vehicles involved in the crash on Interstate 64. Two Missouri residents in the other vehicles survived the accident. One of the vehicles hit the Prathers’ vehicle head on after crossing over the meridian on the interstate, leaving no time for Prather to react. Missouri police announced that they are opening a criminal investigation on the drivers of that vehicle.

“My heart goes out to the families involved in this tragic accident. Condolences to both families. In the immediate sense, the community has lost wives, mothers, daughters, and sisters. The loss in our Manual family is enormous. Brennan please know we are all here for you with love and support in this difficult time,” Mr. Farmer said in a statement.

Mayor Greg Fisher responded to the incident with a Tweet giving his condolences to the families affected, along with the Louisville Fire Department, KIVA and many other volleyball organizations.

My heart is breaking at the loss of four Louisvillians, including a Louisville firefighter, killed in a tragic accident today in Missouri. I ask that you join me in keeping their families, friends and co-workers in your hearts and prayers.

The Prathers and McCaws were traveling from Louisville to St. Louis for the girls to participate in a volleyball tournament for their club, Kentucky Indiana Volleyball Association (KIVA). The tournament held a prayer service the following morning for the families.

Our hearts are heavy with the loss of four beautiful souls in Carrie and Kacey McCaw and Lesley and Rhyan Prather. Our KIVA family will never be the same and we send prayers and love to all of the families touched by this tragedy.

Lesley Prather also played volleyball for the University of Louisville from 1998-2001, and later became a head coach at IU Southeast and served there from 2009-2012. She had worked for the Louisville Fire Department since 2016.

Rhyan Prather played basketball, soccer and volleyball for Noe Middle School, and planned to attend Manual as part of the class of 2025. She also played volleyball for the highest age 12 travel team for KIVA, along with Kacey McCaw.

The two mothers also coached KIVA teams that are participating in the tournament this weekend. Many teams at the conference wrote the players’ name and numbers on their wrists and volleyball shoes as a tribute to the girls.

Prather also posted a memorial on his Instagram about his mother and sister, celebrating their lives and explaining his feeling since the accident yesterday morning.

Brennan Prather and his family were consulted prior to the publication of this article. They expressed their support for everything included. Please note that Mr. Farmer’s statement was added after the original publication of this article.

KC Ciresi is a staffer for Manual RedEye this year. She loves running, playing instruments, photography, and singing. You can contact her at [email protected]

1 Comment

One Response to “Members of a Manual family killed in St. Louis car crash”

Nancy Ciresi on
February 17th, 2020 12:03 pm

Thank you for writing this story, Katie. I know it was extremely difficult for you, but you did a magnificent job. Prayers and strength to these beautiful girls and their families and friends. We all need it during this extremely difficult time.

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